AAI launches skill development centre for aviation

The Aviation Multi Skill Development Centre—a CSR Initiative by the Airports Authority of India in collaboration with NSDC—will help skill 2,400 youth in aviation jobs.

Airports Authority of India (AAI) has launched a first-of-its-kind Multi Skill Development Centre (MSDC) for the aviation industry. This Centre will train about 2,400 youth and women in eight aviation job roles, over the next three years.

The Centre has been set up in Chandigarh in collaboration with the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) and is supported by the Aerospace and Aviation Sector Skill Council (AASSC) of India. This Centre will use Chandigarh’s old Airport Terminal building and leverage AAI’s existing infrastructure, which has been converted to offer training in modern aviation courses as well as upskilling programmes, to empower youth and women in particular. It is equipped with modern training infrastructure to supplement an industry-relevant course curriculum.

Upon successful completion of the skill training, the candidates will be certified by NSDC through the AASSC. The Training Provider—BESTT—has been mandated to ensure job placement in the aviation and allied fields for at least 70 per cent of the successfully-trained students.

Radha Bhatia, chairperson, Bird Group (the parent organisation for BESTT) says, “India is among the fastest-growing aviation markets globally, and aims to become the third largest market by 2025. The rapidly growing sector requires highly skilled manpower and we believe that the Centre is a positive move in this direction. Knowledge sharing and skill upgradation are Bird Academy’s focus areas and through our partnership with NSDC, we are glad to help bridge the employability gap by creating a specialised and skilled workforce within the aviation and aerospace sector.”

Demand for aviation skilled personnel has been rising commensurate with the boom in the civil aviation sector witnessed in the last three to four years. More than 900 new aircraft are expected to be inducted by Indian scheduled airlines in the coming few years. Air connectivity for both passenger transport and air freight is increasing, with new air routes and operationalisation of unserved or underserved airports through the UDAN Regional Connectivity Scheme. MRO and ground-handling demands for skilled personnel are also rising in tandem.

Recognising this demand and to bolster the Skill India Mission, the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) and the Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship (MSDE) have collaborated to launch this Aviation MSDC at the Chandigarh old airport terminal building.

With an outlay of Rs 5.25 crore, this project is a unique CSR initiative of AAI. NSDC, the implementing agency of MSDE, in collaboration with the Bird Education Society for Travel & Tourism (BESTT) will undertake the training programmes. The course curriculum and assessments of the training have been designed by the AASSC in accordance with the National Skill Qualification Framework.

Commenting on the collaboration, Manish Kumar, MD & CEO, NSDC says, “NSDC is building long- term partnerships to extend the reach of skill training across sectors and geographies. This world-class skill development centre is geared towards providing cutting-edge training facilities and making skill training aspirational for the youth. This initiative will facilitate the availability of industry-ready workforce for aviation and aerospace sectors.”